Discipline methods not proof of injustice

It is important to admit that God, if he exists, is an "awesome power," to quote Buck. If God exists, he is intrinsically larger than life as we know it.

However, once God is ceded to be omniscient and omnipotent, he immediately becomes ineffable. In this sense, questioning such actions as the hardening of Pharaoh's heart in Exodus becomes contradictory to a fundamental belief of God: If he could be fully understood, he would be reduced to a demigod status and be merely superhuman.

Buck is keen in his observation that society presents a different picture of God than the Bible. God is faithful and benevolent . . . to his ardent followers. In the Old Testament, God punishes nonbelievers and disciplines believers who stray. In contrast, God blesses his followers (Genesis 22:16-17). So while God's reactions to nonbelievers is at times perplexing, his love (for his people) is consistent.

When we break laws in our modern society, we incur punishment. Traffic violations yield tickets, public offenses lead to fines, felonies to incarceration. So if man estranged himself from God via an original sin and continued to disobey God's laws and guidelines, logically man deserves punishment.

Where would the justice be if punishment were withheld? If a modern day king elected not to punish crime offenders would we sit back and say that he is still a great king? Certainly not.

God's methods of punishment/discipline cannot be used to prove he is not a loving god. In the New Testament, God decides to take the punishment for man's sin. Not only does man receive God's mercy (not getting what you deserve), but also man receives his grace (getting what you do not deserve). There is no use gainsaying that God does not love man given such circumstances; this is undeniably an act of unparalleled love.

Two of Buck's three final concluding statements could not be more right: Society misunderstands God's works from a biblical context. But if God is flawed, if he makes mistakes, if he himself needs to be forgiven, then that "awesome power" becomes tainted and is not worth basking in. Divine truth demands perfection.

Bret Mavrich
freshman-liberal arts

Taking Bible excerpts out of context unfair

I would suggest that he try reading the entire Bible before he randomly selects and interprets selections which most Bible scholars understand must be examined in cultural and historical context. In addition, Biblical texts are laden with symbolism and allegory which becomes lost on those who fail to examine them properly.

I find Buck's claims that the Bible reduces God to "the likeliness of an ill-tempered man who lacks the eternal patience, love and justice" not only ridiculous but insulting.

The entire message of the New Testament, which Buck conveniently neglects to mention, is one of love, hope, salvation and redemption. I could go on to refute specifically the theological and doctrinal errors of his statements, but suffice it to say that maybe one so interested in getting people to search for the "TRUTH" do a little more research before drawing such uneducated conclusions.

As much as I hate dignifying that column with a response, I had to speak up. Buck should know that his casual blasphemy under the guise or pretentious philosophizing has no place in a column in which one claims to be seeking truth. Apparently he needs to go back to Sunday school.

Sheryl Evans
Class of 1995

Christian God far from a fair being

The standard that is set by Christianity morality is in direct opposition to human nature and the requirements of human life. Because of this, it is by definition a standard that no human being can live up to so inevitably every human will end up sinning. So because you can't live a perfect life, God will instead grant you mercy and let you into heaven if you surrender your soul to Christ.

But if you don't surrender your soul to Christ -- perhaps because you practice a different religion or perhaps because you don't even believe that there is a God like myself -- then you are sentenced to hell because you have failed to live up to an impossible standard. How can anyone honestly think that this is just?

To draw an analogy here, it's like two parents expecting their child to live up to an impossible standard that they've set and saying to the child, "Because you can't live up to the impossible standard that we've set for you the just thing for us to do is to kill you. But, if you surrender your life to us and become our slave, then we will grant you mercy and allow you to live."

In principle, there is no difference between this hypothetical example and Christianity. The only differences are superficial ones. The parents are God. Instead of killing the child for not living up to an impossible standard, humans are sent to hell. And instead of surrendering your life and being allowed to live, humans must surrender their soul and they will be allowed into heaven.

And the Christian God is supposed to be just and loving? He sounds more like a power-lusting sadist to me. Christians have it backwards. It is not human beings that are sinful and evil by nature. What's evil by nature is their code that judges human beings against an impossible standard, punishes then for failing to live up to it and then offers them a loophole where they can sacrifice their soul in order to avoid this punishment.

Michael Dahlen
junior-nutrition